


In Another World

by Bwans, sapphicsnake



Series: DA: ModAu [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, F/F, F/M, M/M, Modern Era
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2019-05-02
Packaged: 2019-10-01 01:32:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 16,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17234921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bwans/pseuds/Bwans, https://archiveofourown.org/users/sapphicsnake/pseuds/sapphicsnake
Summary: Incredibly self indulgent Modern AU. Inquisition from beginning to end with bits thrown in that we thought were missed opportunities (*cough*Anders*cough*).





	1. Intro: The Concalve

 

"Tomorrow is the summit," Eirien said as she pushed some food around on her plate.  They had made it to the city just in time, traveling from the mountains and their safety to be amongst the Shems.  This was an important issue, their keeper had said, and one that was going to change the fate of the world. Eirien wasn't yet sure how that was going to work, but she found she didn't have much of an appetite during dinner.  She looked to her long time friend and cousin, watching Aderyn closely for a moment. "I'm not sure if I'm more anxious or excited about the marvelous world of Shem politics," she snorted some, pushing a pile of mashed potatoes with her fork more.

They had traveled a long ways, and Eirien was tired.  Her blond hair, usually done up in intricate plaits and twists, was loose and falling around her shoulders, though her pointed ears still poked out at the sides.  "What do you think will happen?"

Aderyn maintained her complex plaited hairstyle, hating the way her hair felt when it fell into her face while she tried to do things, like read or eat. She was eating just fine, not as nervous about this whole debacle as Eirien was, or perhaps just hungrier. What the Shems decided on the fate of all mages, elf and human alike, would affect their people. Would this be the start of another war? Would the Shems honor their treaty, no matter who came out on top at this summit? It wasn't something Ade could answer, but her and Eirien were there to find out everything they could, for strategy, for preparation.

"Shems will fight Shems. We will watch, take notes, report back," Aderyn said with a shrug, "Maybe, if things get bad enough, we'll have to start taking in refugees, mage elves from the diaspora."

"Taking in city elves is something we've always considered. Now might be the perfect time," she nodded in agreement.  Leaning back in her chair, Eirien let out a long sigh. "I just hope they can stay civil long enough to get through the talks.  We know how quick Shems are to just...attack. They've started fights and wars for less," she snorted again and stared up at the ceiling.  Their hotel was nice enough for the night, and most people had decided to avoid the elven mages, which was fine with Eirien.

"Yeah it'd be nice if they didn't fuck this up like they've fucked everything else up, but they’re Shems, so.." Aderyn said with a comical shrug and a light laugh, though it only lasted a moment before she sobered up, "I mean truly, for their mages, I hope this goes well. I can't imagine having been stuck in a circle. It sounds so claustrophobic."

"Their circles are like prisons, and it's horrible," Eirien shuddered at the thought.  "The idea of being trapped in one is very unsettling," she tapped her fingers on the table now, eyes traveling over to her staff as it rested against the wall.  "Did Keeper say we're allowed to fry anyone that tries to apprehend us?"

"I believe her instructions were 'lay low, unless you can't, and then do what you need to'. So, yes?" Aderyn had opted not to bring a staff, two mages stood out more than one. Instead she had opted to bring blades. They were enchanted, and could do a fair amount of damage on their own, even if they weren't as powerful as a staff. But she had decided that the advantage for her presence not to scream 'mage' was worth the cost.

Her cousin grinned at that, finding some humor in the idea of it. “Works for me,” Eirien hummed in agreement. “I spotted another elf around here earlier. He wasn’t Dalish from what I could tell, but he didn’t seem like he’d grown up here.”

"Oh? Was he cute?" Aderyn joked, continuing to pick at her meal. On the trip up she'd alternated between joking that the only reason she was going to this bullshit affair was to find a partner, and that the only reason was she was going was to find _Eirien_ a partner. Well, half joking, anyway.

“If you consider bald and shifty cute, then maybe,” Eirie said, laughing lightly. “He was handsome, in that stern sort of way. I was more curious about him than anything. I wondered if he was a representative from somewhere else,” she mused lightly.

"What makes you bring this up?" Ade asked in a serious tone, "Are you worried about him? Or just curious?"

“Part of me is worried. Then again everyone but you worries me here,” she looked to Aderyn again.

"I don't worry you? I'm offended. I'm very worrisome," Aderyn said with mock offense, looking completely stricken as she feigned hurt. "I mean I suppose we should keep an eye on the other people instead of each other. But surprise betrayal is a classic move in Shem territory, so just know... I'm watching you."

That had the other woman practically doubled over as she laughed, mostly from how straight of a face Aderyn held the whole time. When she could compose herself, she wiped her eyes and grinned. “I don’t worry about you because I know I can take you in a fight. Or at least hold my own for a while,” she teased. The two had grown up sparring together and knew all of each other’s tricks.

Aderyn gasped lightly, trying to hide a smile, "Are you saying you're a better fighter than me? How dare you?" She resisted the urge to reach across the table and tickle her cousin to get them both laughing. They were trying to eat, after all, and such a public disturbance may draw more attention than they wanted to.

"But seriously, point out this elf next time you see him, okay? I want to be able to keep an eye on him too, in case he really is trouble. Or a potential ally."

As usual, Aderyn had lifted Eirie’s spirits.  Having grown up with her, trained with her, both working under the Keeper's watchful eye, Eirien trusted her cousin more than most other people.  It only made sense that the other Elf had been able to make her feel a little more at ease for the time being.

"I will," she nodded again.  "If he shows up tomorrow, I'll let you know.  Who knows what to expect from him, or anyone else for that matter."

"Honestly I think the biggest surprise this thing could give us would be if it were dull." Aderyn commented. It was more than likely going to a lively event with arguments galore. The tension was palpable in the streets, even amongst the common folk. Everyone had an opinion on mages, and what should be done about (or to) them.

  


The two retired early that night.  They had to be up and ready for the summit well before everyone else had a chance to do anything stupid.  Eirien dressed nicely, plaiting her hair in its usual complicated style. Between Aderyn and Eirien, it almost looked as if that was the mandated hairstyle of the Dalish.  Really, it was just something they both liked, but they did enjoy confusing the Shems with another stupid idea of theirs. They set off for the Conclave in the center of the city, people from all over filing in as they got ready.

Eirien kept a calm and cool presence about her now, even if she was anxious.  Something was nagging at the back of her mind, because it all felt too easy. Too simple for things not to go wrong.  They had been taught to trust their instincts, and mages seemed to have another sense that warned to danger.

People were announced as they entered the giant meeting room.  It was built like an old cathedral, stone walls and high vaulted ceilings, an ornate and beautiful chandelier hanging in the middle of the room.  She stepped up to the door with Aderyn, eyes scanning the room.

"Aderyn and Eirien of clan Lavellan, representing the Dalish," a slim man said as he announced each arrival.  They were escorted to their seats, the traffic flowing smoothly. They had been checked before entering, guards wanting to keep any potential danger to a minimum.  Eirien sat when another woman walked in, taller than most, and a strikingly dark pair of eyes. Her face was sharp, serious, and hair cropped short.

"Cassandra Pentaghast, representing the Order of the Seekers."

"This should be interesting," Eirien whispered to her cousin.  As she looked around the room, she spotted a familiar face in the back.  "Ade, that's him," she whispered. "The elf I saw before."

Aderyn did not admit it to her cousin, but she had not slept well the night before. She had not thought herself nervous until the dreams had come upon her. She didn't remember much, flashes of green light and disembodied screams mostly, but she had been left feeling uneasy. They were trained to trust their instincts, and she made sure to be extra on guard as they made their way to the summit.

Ade had been appraising the Seeker when Eirien grabbed her attention. She followed her cousin's attention to a lean, bald elf sitting in the back of the room. He looked very unassuming for all intents and purposes, though when she laid eyes upon him the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. She felt he held great power, but other than that she had no sense of him.

Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she turned back to her cousin, a smirk upon her lips, "Solid 8 out of 10," She said as a rating for their mysterious Elvhen friend's physical appearance, "Would do."

"Ade," Eirie snorted, elbowing her cousin lightly.  Even now they were passing jokes, though they both knew to stay on high alert.  "He is handsome, that much is true," she hummed a little, watching him for a moment.  The stranger's eyes drifted across the room, much like everyone else. There was a sense of calm over him that seemed off, like he was too relaxed for the situation.

For a brief moment, their eyes met.  His own moved to Aderyn then, a smile passing over his face before he looked away.  "...I think he's a mage," she whispered again. "He's more powerful than he lets on."

"I was getting that vibe, too," Ade said, trying to ignore a faint pink tinge which had blossomed to life in her cheeks when their eyes had met. She found that, jokes aside, she actually was quite attracted to the strange elf.

"Ser Cullen of the Templar Order," the Announcer called out over the room. Soft murmurs sparked up in some corners, while others became tensely silent. Ade watched as the tall, proud Fereldan man made his way to his seat. He held himself in a way that said he was not unaccustomed to being in a room that was potentially going to explode into a fight at any moment.

Eirien's attention was pulled to the new man walking into the room.  At first it was because of the word Templar and then it was because the Shem man walking in was...well, handsome.  She stared for a moment, watching how he moved and carried himself. He was likely to be a target, if he was there for the Templar Order, and likely didn't care for mages that much.  His looks were nice, sure, but if he was like any other Templar, Eirien wanted little to do with him. Still, she couldn't help but stare a moment longer.

"Well, this is going to get interesting now," Eirien sighed and glanced back at Aderyn.  It wasn't long before she noticed that attention was falling on them as well. Being two Dalish, one very clearly a mage, was making them more of a sight than Eirien wished to be.

Things had been going the expected amount of to shit. Templars insisting mages were all a danger without templars to keep them in check, one or two extreme mages responding to that with a hearty "death to templars", which Ade couldn't help but snort at, though she tried not to. That's how the first day went.

 

The second day, they had been split into multiple groups for discussions. Ade and Eirien had discussed all night whether to stick together or split up, and ultimately decided that splitting would be best, opting for more information over what Ade felt was perhaps overkill in the "just in case" department. After all, though yesterday had been tense, Ade didn't expect the whole thing to blow up on day two.

Ade had been wrong.

Things literally blew up. Everything that had been being discussed flew out of Ade's head the moment she felt the building shudder underneath her. Screams of surprise in her room faded away as she dashed out, following the screams of terror to where her cousin was supposed to be.

 

Eirien had thought the first day was crap.  The second day was worse. She had been split into a group with the Divine herself, thinking it would be a good way to gather as much information as possible.  She was nervous, worried about Ade and what was going on in the other rooms. Tensions were only rising, no one able to agree despite some rather smart points being made on both sides.  It was frustrating, to say the least, and getting nowhere quickly. Soon enough she was tired of it.

That was, until a mage at the back of the room seemed off.  She noticed before anyone else, though she hardly reacted. She kept an eye on the strange mage, cloaked in the shadows and shifting nervously about.  At one point, he started to approach the Divine, too quickly for Eirien's liking. She hadn't had any sort of ties to the holy woman, but she knew no good could come of harm to her, not in this moment.

"Easy," Eirien said and held out a hand.  Just like that, however, the mage lunged with a dagger drawn.  He plunged it into the Divine's chest, and the Elvhen woman instantly knew blood magic was afoot.  She screamed for help, everyone dashing and trying to stop the magic at hand. Eirien threw herself a the mage, ramming her shoulder into him and knocking a strange orb from his other hand.

He was shouting something, chaos erupting around them as she ran to grab the orb before it could be used again.  It was glowing a sickly green, the Divine gasping for breath as blood spilled over the polished floors. As soon as Eirien's hand touched the strange object, the room exploded into a bright light. The building fell away and everyone that was left in the room was killed instantly.  Just like that, it all went black, and Eirien felt herself hit the ground, though she did not know where or how.

 

Ade continued to stare in shock at the place where she had expected to see the room her cousin had disappeared into. That part of the building was gone. Just, completely gone. Bodies lay strewn about amongst rubble. People were screaming, fleeing, some helping the injured some merely running for their lives but that wasn't the worst of it. There was a great glowing chasm up in the sky above where that part of the building had been.

Ade lost all connection to sanity in that moment, and screaming her cousins name she began digging through the rubble, until her hands were bleeding. Before she knew it, strong yet gentle arms were pulling her away from her goal. A soft, sad voiced reached her through her haze, and though she wouldn't note it until later, the words were Elvhen, "We have to go. The building is collapsing. Whoever you are looking for is either already out or lost to us."

She half-ran, half-stumbled out with the stranger, and as soon as they were out of the building everything went black.

The stranger kept a strong grip on Ade's hand, leading her away from the chaos.  People were scattering, some rushing to help and save others, while more ran for cover, not knowing what would happen next.  A hole had been ripped open in the sky. He ducked into an alley, away from the screams for a moment. "Are you hurt?" he asked Ade, hands resting on her shoulders.

Ade came back to the present, out of her thoughts. She looked at the stranger who had ultimately saved her life. She could hear the building collapsing even as far from it as they were. It was the elf Eirien had pointed out. Not Dalish, not city, something else. Laughter burbled up in her throat and it bubbled out before she could stifle it, as she tried to process what he had asked.

_Are you hurt?_

She look at her hands, scraped and a bit bloody but nothing serious. She did a roaming check of her body. She could feel aches that would become bruises, but nothing else. "Nothing serious," she answered. A wave of panic threatened to overtake her as she remembered that her cousin was nowhere to be found. Without thinking, she gripped onto the strange elf's arms as if to steady herself, taking a couple of deep breaths before speaking, in a voice barely a whisper, "Nothing physical."

Once the panic had subsided, she looked back to her daring rescuer, "Are _you_ hurt?"

The stranger smiled, his soft eyes crinkling just a little.  There was a calm over him, though worry was still present in his face.  This was not a good situation, but he could hardly give out all the details for the time being.  "I am fine," he nodded, slowly releasing his grip, only to make sure she was able to stand on her own.  He looked over her, as if to check for himself that there were no life threatening injuries.

"You were looking for another, yes?  The one you were with yesterday?" he remembered Ade.  And he remembered the other elf with her. "Just keep breathing," he said when he saw how her breath hitched.  "We do not know her fate just yet," He spoke in a strange way, his voice having an uncommon cadence and rhythm to it,  "There's no way to tell where she might be right now."

"She was in that room," Ade said, eyes distant as she remembered the scene she'd come upon. Her eyes glanced over to the elf before her, "The room that's no longer there."

She felt her cousin was gone. That no one could have survived the carnage she'd seen, not in the proximity Eirien must have been to it. She appreciated the stranger's words, but she did not find hope in them.

"I see," He nodded and looked towards the crumbling building.  What had been left was gone now, people still fleeing the area.

 

"I am Aderyn, of clan Lavellan," she said, looking into the soft-grey eyes of the elf who was the reason she wasn't buried with her cousin, "Thank you for saving my life."

"I am Solas," he nodded his head to her.  Before he could say more, people went rushing by, rescue crews already trying to get any injured out of the rubble as the building smoldered.

"Reports of a rift opening!  Be ready for demons!" one shouted as they raced past them.  Solas frowned at that, staring after them.

"A tear in the veil.  More are going to appear, if my understanding is correct," he sighed.  "We should find shelter, before it gets worse."

"The nearest publicly designated emergency shelter is about half a mile that way," Aderyn said, gesturing off to their right, then gesturing ahead of them, "My hotel is about quarter of a mile that way."

She made herself look back at the building, for tactical reasons, she told herself. She could see the rift, and upon seeing it feel the tremors of the Fade upon her skin, goosebumps forming. It was bright green, just as the light in her dreams had been. She felt like vomiting but forced herself to set it all aside. Tactical thinking. It would keep her alive. It would help her people.

"The hotel may be risky because of its proximity, but the public shelter is risky because in all likelihood everyone will try to flock there. Thoughts?"

"Hotel will be safe enough.  If you wanted to be technical, nowhere is safe with rifts opening up," He tried to humor her just a little, and then realized it was in poor taste.  "We should go there. Perhaps your friend will think the same thing, if she is able to get away from the madness," he offered, reaching to take her hand again.

Solas' hand was surprisingly rough.  He still offered it to Aderyn, as he didn't want to lose her in the crowd.  "Deep breath, and stay focused on moving forward. Ready?"

"Ready," Aderyn said as she grabbed his hand and began to lead the way without ever thinking twice. Perhaps it was the adrenaline, or the sudden loss of her best friend and constant companion, or the fact that Solas had saved her life, but she felt safe with him. Even as she realized that, she challenged herself to keep alert to anything shady. After all, she barely knew the elf.

 

They had to fight a couple demons, and an abomination, on their way to the hotel. Overall, it was very manageable. Considering. The lobby of the hotel was chaotic when they ducked into it. Mages and Templar alike stood in small groups, looking wary and worn. Aderyn was digging around for her keys when two people she (surprisingly) recognized burst through the doors. The tall Seeker, Cassandra, was calling for people to get out of her way and behind her the blonde Templar, Cullen, moved slowly, carrying something in his arms- no, wait, someone. 

Aderyn's heart stopped beating. Though it was mussed and dirty, she recognized that blonde hair. It was Eirien, her lethallan. Before she knew what she was doing she was pushing her way through the crowd towards her cousin, not even processing the fact that a Seeker and a Templar had her, not even thinking of the danger it might be to herself. That is, until Cassandra raised her sword to point directly at Aderyn's unarmored chest.

"Who are you?" Cassandra spat as Ade lifted her hands to show she was no threat.

"Aderyn of clan Lavellan. And that man there is holding my cousin."

Being closer, Aderyn could see that Eirien was not only unconscious but something strange was about her, her energy was changed. That's when Ade spotted the growing infection upon her cousin's hand, a bright green light to match the rift in the sky.

Solas barely had time to react to Aderyn taking off.  He turned to see the elven woman marching towards the Seeker and a Templar, and instantly his heart dropped.  The woman had to be mad to approach like that, and it wasn't long before he saw the flash of a sword. Moving quickly, Solas bolted to her side, offering his hands up in surrender as well.  He could spot the mark on the other elf's hand and knew what this had to mean.

This was turning much worse than he had feared.

"Your cousin?" Cassandra raised a brow at Aderyn.  "Then maybe you can explain why she is the only one that lived in that room."

"I can't. I thought she was dead, was sure of it," Aderyn said softly, her gaze shifting away from the sword-wielding seeker to her soul-sister. She did nothing to hide all the emotions which she was feeling. Confusion at how Eirien was there when no one else made it, relief that she was alive, concern over what that mark was and what it meant.

"Wherever you are taking her, I am coming with," her tone of voice had changed drastically, as had her expression. She would not be argued with on this count. She would not leave her soul-sister's side, and certainly not in this, her hour of need. For Aderyn could see that Eirien was fighting for her life. Whatever the mark on her hand was, it was taking its toll on the elf.

There was silence spreading over them, tense and heavy.  Solas could see the same, knew what would happen if this was drawn out any longer.  He stepped a bit forward, clearing his throat. "If I may," he said, which earned him a pointed glare from the Seeker.  "I have studied the Fade, I know much of how it works, I may be able to help before that mark kills her," he was hoping to appeal to Cassandra's better senses.  "After all, if she is the only one alive, she is valuable and may have information on what happened. "

Cassandra looked from one elf to the other, then nodded and lowered her sword, but never her guard. "Come with us. Cullen, this way," she said and confidently strode off as the others trailed behind her.

 

Cassandra brought them all to a suite which her and Leliana were sharing. There were two bedrooms and one shared room, which contained kitchen and living room. Cullen gently placed Eirien on the couch, per Cassandra's orders, and Aderyn took her place by her side. She held Eirien's unmarked hand, and resisted the urge to pray aloud. It was too vulnerable. For now she would keep her prayers silent to others but always heard by the gods.

Solas was quick to move beside the fallen elf as well, reaching for her marked hand.  He started to work, though he was silent all the while. He was studying it, trying to keep it from spreading or harming Eirien more.  Every now and then he would glance to Aderyn, finding that her presence was helping one way or another. The elf whispered spells, watched as the Dalish on the couch twisted a little each time something changed.

He frowned more as he worked.  No one else would be able to do this, as no one else understood the Fade like he did.  Taking a deep breath, he focused his energy into the mark on her hand. It looked like a tear across her palm, glowing brightly and pulsing, likely in time with the rifts forming outside.

"How did you find her?" He asked at one point, looking over his shoulder at Cassandra.

"We were out searching for survivors," Cassandra said, a slight nearly unnoticeable hesitation between the words 'searching for' and 'survivors'. Cassandra did not want to say out loud that they had been looking for the Divine. That they had instead found an elf, and evidence that none other than the elf survivor, whatever had happened. The next part Cassandra hesitated to divulge to someone she did not know or trust, but perhaps it would help save the elf's life, which would in turn help Cassandra figure out what the fuck was going on.

"She fell out of the rift."

Aderyn's attention turned from her cousin to Cassandra, startled. It did not stay with Cassandra long though, turning back to Eirien. Eirien had fallen out of the rift. The rift between this world and the Fade. Eirien had been in the Fade. Physically within the Fade.

 

What the fuck.

 

"I see," was all Solas had to say in reply.  He was quiet again, instead focusing on the mark once more.  The work ahead of him was going to be long and drawn out, which he let everyone else in the room know.  It would be a matter of when she woke up, if she woke up, and they could go from there. Right now, he had to just do enough to keep her alive.  "I suggest you all get comfortable for the time being. You can worry about what happened and why when this is done."

Cassandra and Cullen took up residence in the little living room's remaining chairs, both intent on keeping an eye on this strange mage who apparently knew just what they needed, just when they needed it. Cassandra also took the time to pray to the Maker.

An hour or so in, Leliana showed up. Cassandra took her in to one of the bedrooms to explain everything which was happening, everything she knew, and to get information from Leliana. Cullen stayed to watch the mage-elf at work.

Two hours in, Cassandra, Cullen and Leliana had worked out a shift schedule so they could all rest and organize as necessary. One person sleeping, one person out in the field and one person keeping an eye on the trio in the living room.

 

Aderyn never left Eirien's side.

 

Hours passed painfully slowly.  Solas didn't seem to care about any of the three humans coming and going, or what they thought of his work.  There was too much chaos happening to really throw blame around, at least for the time being. He worked tirelessly, well into the next day before he seemed satisfied that the mark was contained. 

It was in the wee hours of the morning that he stopped, sitting back and wiping sweat from his brow.  Eirien still hadn't woken up, but she was at least going to live. It was another handful of hours before she stirred, groaning and blinking her eyes open.  Only dim light poured into the room, her hazel eyes focusing slowly on where she was.

Aderyn was sitting on the floor next to the couch, holding her cousins hand, her head forward as she was completely asleep. Still she stayed next to Eirien, unwilling to move from her side. To his credit, Solas had never once tried to talk her into leaving Eirien. There had been a couple times where the two of them had had to shift so that Ade wasn't in his way, but it had been a non-issue. Ade was happy to shift where she was so he could do what he needed.

 

Waiting had been excruciating. When Solas finally reassured Aderyn that Eirien was going to survive, the elf had all but fallen asleep on the spot she'd relaxed so quickly. Aderyn didn't care what happened from then on with the world, because she knew she could get through it with Eirien by her side.

Solas hadn't been far behind her in falling asleep.  He dozed lightly beside them both, arms folded over his chest.  As powerful of a mage as he was, even he could expend himself after enough work.  So he was quiet, unmoving for the most part. Eirien blearily stared around the room, gritting her teeth as she tried to sit up, her head spinning and a throbbing pain moving up her left arm.

"A-Ade?" she managed to croak out, throat feeling dry and scratchy.  They were all covered in soot and dirt, debris from the building. She could make out her cousin's form easily enough, and that was all she cared about for now.  While she had been aware that something happened, the events leading to the explosion were blank.

Aderyn popped awake at the sound of her cousin's voice, at the stirring of motion beside her. She didn't hesitate one second before throwing her arms around Eirien, and she couldn't hold back her tears. She didn't care about the others present, her cousin was alive. Someone hours ago she had been convinced was dead, gone from the world for good.

"Eirien, I thought you were lost," Aderyn trilled in Elvhen against her cousins hair.

Had she been lost?  There was time before the second day of the summit, and now.  Everything in between was gone. Eirien blinked before she could wrap her arm around Aderyn, her left staying at her side for the time being.  It hurt to move, so she didn't want to chance it. "I am sorry I worried you, lethallan," she whispered back in Elvhen, turning into Aderyn's cheek.  She was still tired, still wanting to sleep, but something told her to stay awake. It warned her, said it wasn't safe to rest just yet.

"What happened?"

Ade pulled away from Eirien so she could look at her cousin, read her face, learn what she could from expression as much as word. She dared not even steal a side glance at the woman watching them, this Leliana, for fear of giving away something or causing suspicion. For now, she continued in Elvhen, to keep a sense of privacy, even if it was false.

"What's the last thing that you remember?" Ade asked gently.

"I...I think going back for the second day," It was a strain to remember, but easy enough to keep speaking in their own language.  It felt better, comforting in a way. "We..went into groups. But that's all," her voice trailed off. It was like something was blocking the memory, stopping her from going further by making a spark of pain in her temples.  She grimaced and leaned her head back against the arm of the couch, closing her eyes for a moment. "I'm sorry. I can't remember anything else."

Aderyn gently brushed hair from Eirien's face. "Do not worry, lethallan. You've been through much. There was... an incident, at the summit," she was trying to choose her words carefully. The trauma of the past day replayed in her mind, and she wanted Eirien to hold none of that in her heart, or as little as possible, "We're not sure exactly what. But there was some kind of explosion, and it seemed to come from the room you were meeting in. Of those in that room, you are the only to survive."

Ade paused, wanting to give Eirien time to process, but also wanting to tell her everything before (inevitably) some Shem stepped in to interrupt them and insist they speak common, or some such nonsense.

"Something tore a hole in the veil," the green light could be seen in the sky even from where they were. Ade's eyes darted quickly to the matching green mark upon Eirien's hand, "Some humans found you, brought you here. A Templar, and a Seeker. Solas, he's the other elf in the room-" Ade so badly wanted to tell her he's the cute elf you pointed out to me but she was sure Solas was listening "-and I, we found them with you. They said you'd fallen out of the rift."

Fallen from a rift?  Eirien wasn't sure she had heard her cousin right at first.  She stared, brow furrowed and the confusion clear on her face.  If she had been found, falling out of a rift, that meant something.  It had to. What it was, she still wasn't sure.

Then more of it processed.  It dawned on her that she was the sole survivor, the only one to walk away from that room.  Who knows how many others were lost in the aftermath. It didn't take much for her to follow her cousin's eyes as she stared down at her hand.  Eirien swallowed hard, stared at the mark and shuddered.

Speech left her, everything did.  There was something on her hand that was causing the pain and she had no idea how or why it was there.  Tears welled in her eyes as she finally pulled in a strained breath.

Aderyn's squeezed her cousin's unmarked hand gently. "Don't forget to breathe, lethallan. You kind of need that to live," she said in a weak attempt to joke. She wanted to make Eirien laugh, a little chuckle, anything to make her cousin feel better about what was going on. To make herself feel better, too.

Eirie managed to pull in a few more breaths, closing her eyes against the pounding building in her temples.  "All those people," she mumbled under her breath. It took several moments as she reminded herself to breathe more, to even try to speak again.  Slowly, she looked to Aderyn once more. "What happens now?"

"I don't know. We're uh," Aderyn finally dared to look over at Leliana, who was watching the conversation with great interest, "We're kind of in the custody of a Seeker and a Templar. I assume they will have questions."

 

Eirien pulled her eyes up to spot the woman standing across the room.  She stared for a moment, tired eyes realizing that whoever she was, she likely understood everything.  She had too much of a knowing look. Before Eirien could ask anything else, the door opened and the tall woman strode back into the room.  She looked worse for wear, but still moving as if nothing could stop her.

"Leiliana, we have more reports of rifts opening across--" she paused, realizing that the elf on the couch was awake again.  She moved in a few quick steps, long legs carrying her to the couch to grab Eirien's arm, pulling her up and ignoring Aderyn completely.  "You need to tell us what happened in that room, now!"

It was only the fact that Ade knew Cassandra had weapons upon her person that kept her from knocking her on her ass for treating her cousin like that. She had no weapons and did not care to be impaled today.

"You need to be more careful with her, Shem, she is not doing well," Aderyn spat at Cassandra, unable to do nothing in her cousin's defense.

"Cassandra, Aderyn is right. Be gentle with Eirien, she has been through much. She will tell us what she knows, that is-" Leliana's eyes settled on the elven women who could be twins, "If she ever remembers it."

Eirien was more baffled by this woman coming at her than anything.  Given the state of things, she doubted she had a staff to use anymore.  Cassandra released her arm a moment later, huffing as she stalked back towards Leiliana.  Eirien stared back at her, realizing that this woman had figured it out, to some degree.

"I don't remember anything," she said in a desperate tone.  "Nothing about what happened, I swear."

"I believe she is telling the truth, Cassandra," Leliana added, watching her companion pace.

"Unacceptable," Cassandra responded, "'The Divine is missing- or worse, dead- and Eirien is the only one who can tell us what happened. She was the only one who was there."

"Regardless, she cannot tell us anything now. Perhaps her memory will come back with time, perhaps there is something magical we can do," Leliana's gaze drifted away from Cassandra to Solas, "What do you think, Solas?"

Solas, who had stayed quiet and feigned sleeping more, was now very alert and awake.  He looked between the group of people, listening to them as they argued. "It seems likely that her memory will come back, with time.  I know time likely isn't on your side, Seeker," he looked to Cassandra. "But forcing the issue will do nothing to help you either."

"Why are you asking for an apostate's opinion?" Cassandra looked to Leiliana.  "We both serve the Divine, we know what it will mean to lose her-"

Leliana held up a hand to stop Cassandra, "Cassandra, we know next to nothing of what is going on. Solas here was able to stabilize Eirien, without him we would have even less. He holds understanding of this matter that neither of us have. I will not waste a resource just because he is an apostate."

Leliana was silent as she let her words hang between her and the Seeker before continuing. What she had to say next was painful, something she did not want to say aloud, but something which needed to be said. "I believe we have already lost Divine Justinia."

Cassandra's lips formed a tight line across her face and she fell silent at that.  Eirien pulled her left hand to her chest, gripping it tightly as the pain flared for a moment.  With a shout, her hand seemed to glow even brighter for a moment, the windows of the hotel room shaking.

"The rift is growing," Solas said calmly.  "And likely will continue, if we don't try to do something," he glanced back at the two Lavellan women, knowing that this was a risk for everyone.  Eirien had Aderyn to protect her, but it was still much to ask of them. "I believe that your mark may be able to work against them, if you are willing to try."

Aderyn's breath stopped, for just a moment, as she squeezed Eirien's unmarked hand. She didn't want her cousin going anywhere near that damn rift again. But it wasn't just about them. Everyone was at risk from the rift, including their clan.

Ade turned to Eirien, "We'll go together, okay?"

Eirien was dumbfounded once again, looking to her cousin before nodding her head.  If Aderyn was going, she could manage anything. "If it means helping, I'll do whatever I can," she smiled weakly, squeezing Aderyn's hand in return.

"We'll need to go back to the main site," Solas stood then.  "I'm sure the Seeker will be joining us."

Cassandra nodded, and began preparations and explanations. Leliana opted to stay behind and prepare for their return. She would go to a building not far, but far enough to assumedly be safe.


	2. Lavellans Get Their Flirt On

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haven, Part 1 of 4.

 

Haven was where the group of adventurers ended up after their adventure. It had been a success (more or less) , but no one looked particularly relieved or even happy. For they had discovered nearly definitive evidence that the divine had perished, and that there was a third as-of-yet-unnamed party which had been involved in the explosion. Something even worse than they had originally thought was going on.

 

Upon their return, Cassandra went to go talk to Leliana about what was going on. Something needed to happen to address what was going on, and she knew what she wanted to do, but she also wanted to hear Leliana's thoughts about what she had witnessed.

 

Aderyn had no idea what to think about what had just happened, what they had just witnessed. First, the mark on Eirien's hand had worked to manipulate the rift they'd encountered. That in itself was worrying, especially as they were nowhere near figuring out how Eirien had gotten it. And of course, the Divine was dead. Which wasn't good for the mage/templar conflict, so that was only going to get worse.

 

What a fucking mess.

 

They wanted Eirien's opinion.  After everything, after accusing her of crimes that she didn't commit, after calling her prisoner and nearly dying.  Twice. It had been overwhelming and a whirlwind event. But now they were settled in Haven, for the time being, and she had been struggling to get a moment to herself.  It was near impossible, really, and when it finally happened, she had practically ran to freedom. Aderyn had been keeping her sane for the most part, but even now she needed a moment away from it all.  Efforts were being made across the land to find out who this strange third party was. Her own memories were still foggy at best.

 

Eirien looked up and down the halls before slipping out of the main building, almost running as the coast was still clear.  The cold air hit her face, fresh snow having fallen the night before. How long had she been running on such little energy? There was a distinct glow of green still in the sky, and she was exhausted just thinking about it.  Snow crunched under her boots as she slipped towards the gardens around the back of the building. Finding a quiet spot, she sat down on one of the large rocks set up there. She pulled her knees up to her chest and sucked in a deep breath, watching as it turned to steam when she breathed out.

 

Cullen had been in deep talks with Leliana and Cassandra and Josephine, about the founding of the Inquisition. It seemed a good way to go, or as good a way as any, but it was arduous to try and fit all the pieces together to even begin to try and have a successful start. It was beginning to make his head ache.

 

That's why he was in the gardens now. His slightly-over-the-top faux-fur lined jacket wrapped around him to keep the cold out, but the brisk air helped to clear his head. Things felt pure and simple out here, even if the light that reflected off the snow was green. Cullen pulled out a pack of cigarettes and lit one, mostly to have something to do with his hands. He stood, staring up at the green light in the sky, cigarette in hand hanging at his side, and knew things had just drastically changed in the world. Again.

 

Eirien had heard the crunch of snow and someone else coming into the garden. At first she thought it was Aderyn, likely worried and wondering where she had run off to. The elven woman had made herself small in an attempt to hide away from everyone, sitting curled up on her newfound perch. But the footsteps stopped and whoever it was wasn’t speaking yet.  “I’m allowed a moments peace, you know,” she spoke without looking. She had guessed it was Cassandra or Leliana perhaps. 

 

Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the Fereldan man there.  Her face heated up when she realized who she was speaking to and looked away again, even her ears turning red. “S-sorry. Just a little stressed.”

 

Cullen was startled by a strong, pissed-off sounding voice. He didn't let his surprise show, just followed his senses to find the elven woman- he thought someone had said her name was Eirien-who had fallen out of the rift. He continued to watch as she apologized and her ears turned red. It was kind of cute. Cullen's own cheeks flushed pink at the realization of his immediate attraction. He hoped it only read as being from the cold.

 

"No need to apologize. You are allowed a moment's peace. I apologize, as I didn't realize you were out here. If you prefer, I'm happy to leave you alone. Courtyard is big enough that I can find a different corner of it. Or," he said, and held up his pack of cigarettes, "We can sit together in peace, get a bit of the stress out. Your choice, of course."

 

“No, no it’s alright. You don’t need to leave on my behalf. this is the first quiet place I’ve found,” she laughed, though it hardly sounded happy. She stared out into the forest surrounding the building, eyes unfocused. The elf fell quiet again, knees still pulled up to her chest. She had taken to wrapping her hand if only to hide the mark. At least it didn’t hurt so much anymore. 

 

“The cold doesn’t even bother me really,” now she was talking to fill the silence, wondering what this man- Cullen might do in return.

 

Cullen tucked one of his hands into his pocket. He wasn't wearing gloves, even though he really should be. It was a bad habit of his from his youth, always trying to prove he was tough enough. The old message would always play on in the back of his mind, that he wasn't man enough if he was taking care of himself.

 

He looked back towards the organized chaos inside, "There is a lot that needs doing at the moment," he commented, "It can be a bit much. Hence why I'm out here, also. In the cold."

  
  


“That’s an understatement,” she shivered a little. To say there was a lot that needed done felt too small. The world needed saved and she had to help figure it out. She was the only one with a mark that could close rifts.  Even Solas said there was likely no other way. She was wrapped up in a newly formed inquisition that no one had signed up for. 

 

“I just hope I can actually help in the end. Even if it all insane at the moment.”

 

Cullen thought about her part in all of this. He knew there was a lot they didn't know about her yet, about how she'd come to have the mark for starters, but from where he was standing, her job seemed simple. Help close the rifts. Maybe that was oversimplifying it, maybe he was just wrapped up in all the work he had to get done, none of which was straight forward.

 

"Well, if you don't mind me saying," he started, "I think you've got an easy- well, maybe not easy, but simple- part. At least for now. You can help by closing rifts. You know you can do it, so all you have to do is find them and close them."

 

“Right,” she huffed out a laugh again. “That doesn’t seem so bad when you look at it like that. If Cassandra doesn’t lock me away at some point. Or, you know, if a demon kills me,” she snorted and wrapped her arms around her legs more. She shivered against the cold air, but felt refreshed at how cold it was.  Better than the oppressive heat inside. 

 

“Your name is Cullen, right?” She asked then, changing the subject. “Leiliana said something about you being the potential new commander of this whole inquisition.”

 

"Ah, yep, that's me, former Knight-Commander Cullen," he said, feeling foolish for not having introduced himself earlier. It was basic etiquette, but he'd been so surprised by the presence of the elf that it had completely slipped his mind.

 

"Your name's Eirien, right? Apologies if I said it incorrectly, I've only heard it in passing a few times," he sent a silent prayer up to the Maker that he wasn't making a fool of himself.

 

“Mm, you said it just fine,” she smiled at him then. He had gotten it right, surprisingly enough, and she appreciated that. But the man before her was a former knight commander. She pondered for a moment what that meant, if he had given up his position or if it was pointless now because the Divine was dead. More Shem politics she didn’t want to think about. 

 

“Why former?” She asked, curious to know. “If you don’t mind my asking, of course.”

 

"Former because as of this morning I left the Templar Order to join the Inquisition," he answered, wanting to give his apparent colleague an answer but not wanting to Get Into All That just at this moment. The truth was, though he'd been a Templar at heart since he was a child, he'd been having doubts since the disaster at Kirkwall. Those doubts hadn't stopped him from rebuilding the order after the chaos. They hadn't stopped him from rallying the other Templars. And they didn't stop him from thinking that there needed to be something in place to protect people- all people, including mages- from the dangers mages could possess.

 

But had had begun to doubt if the way the Templars were working was actually, well, working.

 

“Really?  You trust in this inquisition that much?” She seemed surprised, her ears even perking up a little at that. She had been bitter and overwhelmed towards the Inquisition being formed. Then again, she was only a few days into recovering from the disaster at the conclave. To hear someone trust in it enough to leave an order they had belonged to for...well, Eirien assumed it had been a while.

 

"Honestly? It's not the Inquisition I trust so much as it is Cassandra. I trust in her to put her all into this, to ask herself at every junction what she could be doing better. I trust her to never stop until she has reached her goal, no matter how lofty or unreachable others think that goal may be," he said, and all of that was true. Cassandra Pentaghast was a Seeker, an order meant to address corruption in the Templar order, and she had been the right hand of the Divine. He had run into her during the aftermath at Kirkwall, helped her some to try and find the mage responsible, and seen her passion and her ability.

 

"I'm sure your experiences with her so far have been...less than pleasant. She doesn't always make a good first impression. If you need someone to vent to about it, I'd highly recommend seeking Varric Tethras out. He's also been on the wrong side of Seeker Pentaghast, but somehow always manages to find humor in it."

 

She had heard the name but had yet to meet the man named Varric. She listened to Cullen nonetheless, guessing that the two had known each other for a while for Cullen to be talking about her like this. She shifted a little and rubbed her hands together, thinking over what she heard. 

 

“I want to believe there’s a way to fix all of this. Or why I got this,” she held out her wrapped hand and frowned at it. She stared at the spot she knew the mark to be in. “The Seeker said a few people are starting to call me the Herald of Andraste, which is hilarious considering I’m an elf,” she laughed softly and propped her chin on her knees. “Apparently there was a woman behind me in the fade. I couldn’t tell you who it was, though.”

 

Cullen had heard the whispers calling her the Herald, as well. He had also seen the way Cassandra looked when she thought no one was watching her: torn, contemplative, worried, vulnerable. He assumed she was going through what he was, a sort of crisis of faith. Was this a test, and they were supposed to disavow this false herald? Or was this real, and Andraste had blessed them with someone who would help heal this world? He didn't know. He wasn't sure he ever really could know. What he did know is there was a scared woman in front of him, and that she wanted to help.

 

"Perhaps it was Andraste. Perhaps it was an Elvhen goddess. Unless you regain your memories, we will never know. And people will always have something to say, something to believe about incidences as big and terrifying as a hole in our sky. People may need the comfort of the idea that Andraste had a hand in it, that it is all happening for a reason. For some, that's a lot less scary than thinking that things happen for no other reason than random chance."

 

It was true, she realized. It was less terrifying if there was a reason. A force behind it all. And even if she couldn’t change her own beliefs or be Andrastrian, she could understand the concept of needing faith to her through hard times.  This was arguably the hardest time to get through, after all. She smiled a little to herself, finding wisdom in Cullen’s words. “I agree,” she finally nodded. “Faith helps many, no matter their beliefs.”

 

That was also a trick, she thought, but she wasn’t about to argue faith with an ex-Templar that she had just really met for the first time. Another shiver ran over her and she realized now the cold was starting to her worse. With no coat, or gloves, and only a long sweater and jeans, she was getting cold quickly. Eirien moved her slim legs to the side, going to step off the rock to head back inside. What she had missed, however was a patch of ice. Her boot caught it and the elf tipped forward, falling rather clumsily from the rock.

 

Cullen's instincts kicked in and before he could think about whether or not it was a good idea, he was moving to catch the elf, his barely-touched cigarette dropping into the snow with a soft sizzle. He managed to stop her from falling on her face, though she sort of face planted into his chest. His hands on her arms, he gently helped her into an upright position.

 

"Are you alright?" He asked, letting go of her quickly though standing at the ready in case she wasn't quite oriented enough and needed steadying again.

 

Eirien held in a yelp when she slipped, fearing face planting right in front of a very nice man. But instead, she was met with something solid and warm. It was fluffy, too. Instantly her face started to turn red as she pulled back a little, careful of her balance. Then she was staring up at Cullen, only now fully realizing that he was a fair amount taller and bigger than he looked.  She was of slight build, and felt even smaller in front of him. Perhaps the rock had made her feel bigger due to being up higher. 

 

“I-I’m fine,” she smiled some, face and ears burning red. “Just slipped on ice, I think. Thank you for catching me,” she cleared her throat, brushing some loose snow off her pants. “I appreciate it.”

 

Cullen backed away a couple steps from her, awkwardly smiling, his cheeks bright pink. He was perhaps half a step further than necessary, as his brain had caught up with everything that had happened and he realized how slight yet strong she had felt against him. It had felt nice, and he realized just how starved for physical affection he must be.

 

"Good. Yes, you're welcome," he said, and tried to remind himself to keep a calm demeanor. He'd grown a lot since his awkward days. Well, he hoped he had. In an attempt to look completely unfazed, he pulled out his pack of cigarettes again, keeping his hands busy.

 

Aderyn had tried to hold off on looking for Eirien, figuring her cousin needed space. But as minutes dragged on, the anxiety amped up and it came to a point where she felt like something was squeezing her heart and the only way to relieve it was to see Eirien. She promised herself that she would see the elf, and then leave her alone if that's what she wanted, but she just needed to see her.

 

She had just opened the door to the little garden, and spotted Cullen and Eirien. She had been about to leave- after all, Eirien was fine- when she watched her cousin slip. She watched her cousin get flustered, and the Templar get flustered, and the corner of her lips turned up just ever so slightly. This was fucking gold.

 

Eirien noticed how he backed away and hoped she hadn’t just ruined being around him, though they were both rather flustered. She smiled still, clearing her throat again as she shifted on her feet. “Well, I’m, ah...going to head back in for now,” she laughed nervously and rubbed her hands together to keep them busy. 

 

“Thank you for talking to me, too,” her voice was quiet then and the woman was starting to step away, wanting to spare herself (and Cullen) any more embarrassment. Just as she turned to the door, though, she saw her cousin.

 

Standing there. Grinning. 

 

Eirien froze again for a moment before realizing just what that grin meant. “Creators let the dread wolf take me now,” she groaned under her breath.

 

Cullen smiled at the thought that he may have had some positive impact on Eirien's well-being. All he ever wanted was to help people. It's what had motivated him to become a Templar in the first place. But between the politics and the wars, sometimes he lost sight of that. He sent a thank you to the Maker and Andraste for a reminder of why he was doing what he was doing, for showing him that he was making the right choice in joining the inquisition.

 

Aderyn linked arms with her cousin when Eirien got close enough, and had the grace to wait until they were back inside and presumably out of hearing of the Templar. What had his name been? Collin?

 

"Lethallan, I'm glad to see you're feeling better,"  she started, having to work very hard to keep her face straight as she did so, "I mean after all, if you're able to flirt with Templars, you're clearly right as rain."

 

"Fenedhis, Ade, I was not flirting with a Templar," she said, her face still as red as ever.  Her ears burned and she could feel it spreading down her neck as well. She gave her cousin a look, eyes narrowed, but no real anger behind them.  "He simply caught me when he fell, like a decent human should," she said, holding her head up and giving a fake snort of irritation. Slowly, Eirien peeked at Aderyn again, before her face scrunched up and she sighed.

 

"Did it look that much like flirting?  I wasn't trying, I swear," she flopped her head dramatically against Aderyn's shoulder, leaning on her cousin as they walked down the long hall.  She was just thankful it had been Aderyn to find her with Cullen, and not anyone else she barely knew.

 

Ade was giggling through Eirien's exaggerated irritation. It was just the reaction he had been hoping for. It helped things feel a bit normal, even if Ade could still see the slight green glow on her cousin's hand out of the corner of her eye.

 

"You both looked as if you were pubescent teenagers who had accidentally brushed up against your first crush. It was quite cute, actually. And I have to say, if you're going to pick a Templar, he's not half-bad looking. For a Shem."

 

"Right, of course," Eirien snorted as she lifted her head once more.  "As if I'm going to worry about a relationship, especially with a shem, at a time like this," she let out a long sigh and flexed her hand a little.  Her fingers were still cold, and there was a distinct red to her cheeks from being outside for a while.

 

"...How are you doing, though?  You've been taking care of me for days now and I haven't stopped to see how you were doing."

 

"I'm fine," Ade lied, following it up with what she hoped came off as a joke, "Just terrified the world is ending, and traumatized enough that I never want to let you out of my sight. Longing for the simpler days where it was only the mages and the templar who were fighting."

 

Eirien gave her a sad smile at that, moving to wrap her arm around Aderyn's shoulders.  She could sense the joke and the effort her cousin was putting in to keep things calm, for both their sakes.  But still, Eirien was going to worry about her just as much. "It would be much easier if it were that, wouldn't it?"

 

"Or maybe we could go back to fighting the exalted march? That sounds more simple than a giant hole in the sky," Ade joked, leaning into her cousin. It was comforting to have banter. It was a comfort that her cousin was right there. But Ade also had not given herself any time to process what had been going on, what had happened to her. Even though Eirien was okay, the wounds Ade bore from those few hours where she did not know that would take time to heal, if they were fully did.

 

"Seriously though, I thought you were dead. It was awful. I barely made it out myself. If Solas hadn't been there I wouldn't have."

 

She paused to consider what it would have felt like to have their roles switched.  If she had gone for hours not knowing if Aderyn was alive or not, fearing she was dead...it would have torn her apart.  Aderyn had been lucky that someone was there to help her at all, while Eirien had to stop herself from thinking it might have been better if she didn't make it back out of the fade.  It wasn't true, she knew that, but the intrusive thoughts still came now and then. She shoved them away again and stopped in the hallway, making Aderyn stop as well.

 

"I am glad you made it, lethallan," she put her hands on her cousin's shoulders.  "And that I got to come back to you, and have you here with me. I would be lost without you," with that, she pulled Ade into a tight hug, holding her there.  "I'll never scare you like that again, if I can help it."

 

Aderyn savored the solid feeling of her cousin in her arms. This was comfort, this was love, this was home. It was reassuring, an all-encompassing sensory reminder that her cousin was alive, and here.

 

"I'm glad you're here, and that we're here together. Whatever happens now, I know we'll get through it," she said as she pulled away from Eirien, wiping at her eyes, trying to pretend she wasn't crying. In order to cover up her expression of her very real feelings, she jumped straight back into jokes, "I mean you might have to explain to your future spouse that I'm never leaving your side and that's just something they'll have to deal with. Because I am never leaving your side, ever again. In fact, I've already let Cassandra know we only need one bed for the both of us."

 

Eirien laughed again, perhaps for the first time in days and she actually sounded humored.  "I'm sure they'll like that. Keep the elves in one room, and I'm sure my future spouse will understand.  I'll see to it," she hummed a little. There was something relaxing about this, about being able to talk to Aderyn like they always did.  Another thought came to Eirien though, making her tilt her head at her cousin. "Do they even know you're mage yet?" she asked, speaking in Elven to avoid anyone listening in on them.

 

Aderyn looked incredibly pleased with herself, because as of yet no one had seemed suspicious of her. Eventually they would find out, of course, because she sure as shit wasn't going to stop using her magic. But to avoid detection for this long made her feel quite accomplished.

 

"Not a one. Except maybe Leliana, but I swear by Fen'Harel's hairy balls she knows fucking everything. And she hasn't said anything, if she does know, or suspect."

 

"The spymaster?" she asked, though she knew the answer.  The same woman that had asked her questions, but with more care than Cassandra had.  If she was just as mad as anyone else, she never let it show. Leiliana was a mysterious one, that was for sure.  "She wouldn't let onto anything, I would think. She's smart, and she knows how to read people," Eirien shook her head.

 

"But maybe for now, we'll keep it between us, hm?" She grinned at Ade.  "I think you're having fun keeping everyone guessing, too."

 

"The longer I don't do magic in front of people, the more bricks they will shit when I eventually  _ do _ do magic in front of them. I'm aiming for enough to build a moderately sized house."

  
  


~

 

A few weeks went by, and they were all settling into their places in Haven. Ade and Varric were getting along great, and he'd started calling her Blossom. She hadn't been quite sure what to think of it at first, but the more he used it the more she liked it.

 

There was never a shortage of things to do at Haven. Even so, Ade and Eirie kept each other on their toes and never let one another neglect their own practice. They both needed to keep sharp on their physical combat skills and their magical combat skills, though the latter was difficult for Ade because she was still waiting for the right opportunity to present itself to fucking blow people's minds. She was a bit dramatic like that.

 

Honing their physical combat skills was easy. Cullen had several areas prepared for training the soldiers, as well as for anyone to use on their own to practice. Ade and Eirien often sparred in these areas. They were doing so now, as Cullen was doing some clean up after a session with some of his people.

 

Eirien had started to really look forward to training with Ade.  It felt like they were back at home again, even if the arena was different.  Being able to burn up some of her nervous energy and be with Aderyn had been of great help to her.  And even then, she could focus on other training beyond magic, if only to help keep her cousin's secret a little longer.  Today, they were working on hand to hand. It was good to be well rounded in a few different forms, and Eirien knew she needed practice with this.

 

She wasn't even aware of Cullen at first, though she had been caught staring at the man a few times in the past weeks.  Right now, she was paying attention to Aderyn, or the mats underneath them when her cousin managed to flip Eirien over her hip.  The blond elf landed with a grunt, kicking her feet up to stand again. She smirked at Aderyn as they went at it again, this time Eirien swiping Aderyn's legs out from under her and pinning her to the mat with an arm behind her back.

 

Aderyn was grinning from ear to ear as she bounced back up, with a little help from her cousin. She could feel the moisture pooling at her lower back, and underneath her breasts. It was a sign she was working hard, and for now it felt good, though she knew that about ten seconds after they were done it would feel like she was fifty miles of wild wolf ass.

 

Cullen's attention had been drifting over to the pair of elves, their activity of particular interest to him because of his growing attraction to Eirien. Oh I'll just glance, really quickly, is how it had all started, but now he found himself engrossed in their form, his analytical-commander brain taking over the hormone-pheromone brain. Ade caught his eye and smirked as he blushed, but cleared his throat and approached.

 

"Do you mind if I give you a few pointers?"

 

Eirien, still none the wiser to his presence, looked up to see Cullen there.  She smiled some, face starting to heat up. She was thankful that her face was already red and sweating, if only to hide the blush that rose to her cheeks any time Cullen appeared.  She was dressed in her usual sparring gear of a loose tank top, which only partially covered her sports bra, and black leggings.

 

"O-Oh, sure," she nodded at the offer, wiping sweat from her brow.  While they had both been wearing hand wraps, Eirien had doubled on her left hand to keep the mark hidden.  She had control over it for the most part, though she still wasn't fully aware of what it could do. Rather be safe than sorry, for now.

 

Aderyn stepped back as Cullen made his way towards them. She made it clear she was on break by grabbing her water bottle and towel which had been sitting just off the mats. Her eyes twinkled in that way they did when she was thinking mischievous thoughts.

 

"I've noticed that when you're on the defensive, you tend to hold your hands a bit far apart," he started, unaware that behind him Ade was staring her cousin down with a big fat grin on her face, "You'll want to bring them just a bit closer together, with hand to hand you want to be guarding your face and your center."

 

As he talked, he held his hands up to show what he meant, showing both the too-wide stance he'd seen her do and the tighter one he thought she should emulate, "Training is all about muscle memory so that when you get into a fight out in the real world, your body can take over for you. That way you're not thinking 'I have to guard my middle', your arms are just already doing it."

 

The elf nodded as Cullen spoke, watching his form and how he moved.  She wasn't quite used to seeing him out of his usual fluffy jacket, but even now he was a bit covered up.  It wasn't long before Eirien caught the look Aderyn was giving them and held in a groan. She frowned just a little, making a face at her cousin when Cullen wasn't looking.  Instead, she focused on his words again and shifted her arms, spreading her feet further apart to match her shoulders.

 

"Like this?" she asked, hands in loose fists, elbows brought in and knees slightly bent.  It looked like what he was doing, and she was more thankful for the tips.

 

Cullen gently shifted her arms just a smidge more together, hands surprisingly cool, "There. Perfect," he said with a smile. He backed up a few steps, and put his own hands up, "Shall we?"

 

Though he was enjoying the proximity to his latest crush, more than anything Cullen was enjoying himself because this is what he knew. Teaching people to fight was straight forward, simple problems with simple solutions. It was a relief after all the complex problems he dealt with in his meetings with Cassandra, and Leliana, and Josephine.

 

"Right now?" She asked, looking a little surprised.  Cullen was different than sparring Aderyn. He was larger and likely had more training than she ever considered taking.  He was an ex-Templar after all, and a former knight-commander. Surely the man knew how to fight, and how to fight well. He wasn't the commander of their newly formed army for nothing.  When Cullen simply gave her a smile and a nod, Eirien felt her ears burn before she took a deep breath to ready herself.

 

Cullen called the start.  They paced around each other a few steps, tension rising just a bit.  Cullen struck first, distracting her with a jab and following through with punch on his right.  That was his dominant hand, Eirien figured out quickly, and where most of his power would lie. She managed to dodge and pivot, landing a hit on his side before he countered once again.  The two moved together surprisingly well, but nothing like she had experienced before. Cullen was a wall before her, and in full command of each movement. Eirien had always been more going as she went in hand to hand, but here and now, it was different.

 

Aderyn was still making faces, she was sure, but she didn't look her cousin's way.  The two traded soft blows, pulling their punches if only to keep from actually hurting each other too much.  One trick that Eirien was fond of was leg work, and something she was particularly good at. Cullen had almost grabbed her, put her in a lock.  Eirien was just fast enough to sweep his legs out, foot catching at his ankle. The only problem was she lost her own balance in the speed of the move, only falling with Cullen and crashing into the mats with him.

 

Cullen was startled by the sudden loss of his footing, and even more so as a small and strong body fell on top of him. His first instinct was to laugh, and he didn't fight it. He hadn't been expecting her to be able to floor him like that, it had taken him by surprise, and he chastised himself for underestimating Eirien.

 

"Are you alright?" He asked, peering up at her. Looking into her face, seeing her blue-brown-gold eyes, the fact that they were so close fell on top of him like a bag of bricks. The fact that he liked how close they were caused a soft pink to spread from his chest and then up his face.

 

Eirien was panting still, hands on Cullen's chest as she stared down at him, and into his brown eyes.  They were like warm honey, in a way, and she found herself a bit lost in them for a moment. But then Cullen laughed and snapped her out of it, the woman smiling and laughing with him.  She realized herself that this was not an uncomfortable place to be, and she rather liked it herself.

 

"I'm fine," she nodded, blushing harder and starting to push herself up.  "I'm sorry for landing on you. Are you okay?" they were still staring at each other as Eirien had yet to break eye contact or fully push away from Cullen.

 

"I'm good. Will be a bit bruised, but I always am," Cullen teased lightly, his mouth forming a little half-smirk.

 

Aderyn had been trying hard to not say anything. She loved her cousin, she was telling herself. She didn't want to ruin things for her cousin by teasing her when the Templar was not quite ready for that. But she'd held back as long as she could. She made sure to use elvhen, to at least minimize the actual damage.

 

_ "Just kiss already!" _ She shouted at the two of them from her spot on the edge of the mats.

 

The way the corner of his mouth quirked up in a smirk made her heart beat a little faster.  Why did she find this man- this shem, so attractive? He was charming, if not a bit awkward at times, and Eirien found it more attractive each time they interacted together.  Content to stay where she was a moment longer, Aderyn's voice cut right through her mind, making her jerk her head up to stare at her cousin. 

 

"Be quiet!" she managed to reply in elvhen, her face growing a deeper red.

 

Cullen strained to look from one elf to the other, "Is everything alright?" He could see the wicked grin on Aderyn's face, reflecting a deep sense of satisfaction. He could tell Eirien was red, but he wasn't sure if she was blushing or if it was just from the hard physical work she'd been doing.

 

"Everything is fine, Shem," Ade answered, "I'm just cheering you two on. It was a good fight."

 

"Yes, it was," Eirien replied sharply, finally standing up and extending her hand to Cullen to help him up as well.  "You and your shit-eating grin," she switched to Elvhen again, staring at her cousin. There was no malice in her words, just the usual embarrassment of having been caught like that by Aderyn.  Oh and how she was sure Aderyn wasn't going to let her live it down.

 

Cullen gladly took the hand that Eirien offered, pulling himself up. He was entirely sure there was something he was missing from this conversation, and though it irk him slightly to not know what was going on, he let it lie.

 

"I suppose I'll let you two get back to it," Cullen offered, looking and feeling a bit awkward.

 

"What, don't I get a turn?" Ade asked, thoroughly reveling in the look upon their faces when she said that.

 

"Oh-" Cullen started to apologize, or protest maybe? He wasn't sure which was better, suddenly entirely unable to remember how he would act in a situation in which he didn't have a crush on someone involved. Damn his brain. " Uhm. Of course."

 

First they went over her form, Cullen doing his best to switch to Commander-Mode, meanwhile incredibly aware of the fact the Eirien was probably watching. Like Eirien, Ade had very good form for the most part, just a couple slight tweaks to be ideal. When Cullen took up his stance, Ade wasted no time in going right in for it. It took him by surprise, and he nearly lost his balance, but being a war-hardened Templar had its advantages, and apparently one of them was NOT falling on his ass right away in from of the woman he had a crush on.

 

The match didn't last long, but it was quite tense, neither party holding back (much). Eventually, Ade ended up flat on her back with Cullen standing over her, both of them breathing heavily. Ade had a big ole grin on her face.

 

"Not bad for a Shem," she teased him as he helped her up, to which he responded with a hearty eye roll.

 

"I'm sorry, but who ended up on the ground?" he teased back with a smug smile on his face, which quickly turned into a look of surprise as Ade swept his legs out from under him. She graciously resisted the urge to cackle, opting instead for a cockier grin than she had been wearing.

 

"Looks like we both did," she taunted at him, standing over his prone form.

 

" _ That _ is cheating," he pointed at her for emphasis as he spoke, "You get an F."

 

Ade couldn't help laughing at that, even as she helped him up.

 

Eirien couldn’t help but laugh when Aderyn managed to take Cullen by surprise one more time. It was a good trick, and both elves had always taken advantage of it. “By all means,” Eirien motioned to them with her hand. “Teach her a lesson if you have to,” she was grinning this time, clearly amused at the situation. 

 

To watch them spar had been different. She knew Ade’s form like the back of her hand, but observing it had been different. The same went for Cullen. He moved with power and intent, somehow each step was calculated even if it was running off muscle memory like he had told her before. He was strong, toned, and Eirien noticed every muscle she was sure. The way he fought was smoother, too. It didn’t take long for her to realize just what Aderyn was doing. She would have to thank her cousin later.

 

"I think we've had enough lessons for today," Cullen said to Eirien, but turned his attention back to Aderyn, "But I will not forget this."

 

Ade didn't lose her grin for one second, she just crossed her arms and jutted her chin up defiantly. "Bring it, Curly."

  
  


The three finished their training for the day, Eirien being called away to the war room with Cullen. Leiliana had new reports of rifts opening, and more from the sounds of it. So they slipped away and left Aderyn for the time being. 

 

“You put on quite a show,” a voice said from the back of the training room. Solas sat there, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. He has perched himself amongst a row of sparring staffs, meant to help the soldiers learn without hurting anyone. “You’re a good fighter. I think you’d hold your own against anything coming out of a rift.”

 

Aderyn had been considering doing some cool downs when she heard a familiar, silken voice. She turned to spy Solas hovering at the back of the room. She felt her heartbeat quicken and blamed it on being startled, rather than the sight of the handsome elf whom occupied her thoughts more than she'd ever admit.

 

"Thanks. I'd like to think I would," she responded, trying to find a balance between humble and gracious. Her brow furrowed with suspicion as a question rose to her mind, "How long have you been there?"

 

“Not long,” he stood then, making his way closer to her. “I heard some of the commotion and I admit, I was curious,” he smiled at her, the same charming and soft smile he always carried. His voice was soft and velvety, the man walking with an almost unnatural elegance across the floor. 

 

Truth be told he had always been watching. It was part of what he did. But that was not something anyone expected, nor wanted to hear. So he kept that to himself. “You seem to be adjusting well here.”

 

Aderyn hoped he hadn't heard her teasing Eirien, but figured that if he had, he would keep it to himself. He was definitely not a gossip. His air of mystery and quiet solitude was part of what piqued Ade's interest.

 

"It helps that I have Eirie. Things don't feel quite so out of control with someone familiar around," she found herself professing. "And how are you finding it?"

  
  


She wished she could ask a better question. Small talk felt too small, foolish and inane. But she found all her wits flying out of her head the second she was in Solas' presence. What a shame, she was so witty, too.

 

“I do worry,” he started. “Being an apostate mage and having Cassandra around is troublesome at times. But I suppose if that were going to be an issue I would be locked away already,” he chuckled at that, hands folded behind his back. 

 

“Familiarity is always a good thing to have. I find it in dreams and walking the fade in them.”

 

Ade was briefly brought into memories of times she had found solace and peace in the fade. Of spirits she had befriended. Her connection to that realm sung to her as she thought of it, and she felt the energy gently crackling along her skin. It had been too long since she had visited.

 

"Not all mages enjoy the fade," she remarked as she centered herself back into the present, her eyes sparkling as she spoke with him, thoughts whirring, "Some find their connection to it disconcerting. Clearly, you do not."

 

“You’re right. I take much enjoyment out of walking the fade. I’ve seen ancient battlefields, lost places and spirits. There is much to learn from them, despite what you might hear otherwise,” he smiled at her again, a certain gleam in his eyes. He was observing her, learning what he could from sight alone. Solas was always very aware of everything around him, and the elf was always figuring people out. 

 

In a way, he was much like Leiliana in how he watched people. Though he didn’t seem to have a spy ring of any kind, he was just good at talking to most. “Have you talked to many mages about the fade?” He asked her.

 

For a moment, Ade was confused by the question, and then she remembered that Solas didn't know she was in fact a mage. Her mouth formed a slow, sly grin as she answered him, "I have had extensive conversations about the fade, and not just with mages. I find that mages tend to have a bias about the fade and those there, even if they also have valuable information. I prefer to learn from my own experience, and the benevolent spirits who dwell there."

 

She watched him and waited for her words to sink in, and process. She was really hoping she would be able to see the moment the gears clicked in his head.

 

Solas listened carefully. And she answered in a way he had been secretly hoping for. When she spoke of learning on her own and finding spirits in the fade, his eyes started to light up as it all came together. Sure, he had wanted this to be the case, but he didn’t know if she was actually a mage or not. Knowing she was now made the elf grin wider than before, his smile oddly sharp. Perhaps it was the canines that did it the most. But either way, the words clicked. Aderyn was a mage, and she had been hiding it expertly. 

 

“You are a sly one,” he mused and chuckled again. “I am impressed.”

 

Aderyn's heart sped up at his grin, and she felt a heat nestle low in her belly. She couldn't say why his smile pleased her in quite that way, along with the deep sense of satisfaction at having properly presented a false front. She kind of figured if she'd been raised in Orlais, she would've become a Bard. 

 

She made a show of taking a bow, as if signaling the end of her performance.

 

"Thank you, thank you. I think I'm most proud of how many Templars have no idea."

 

He clapped for her, clearly amused at her little performance. Aderyn was smart and quick, and Solas liked that more than anything. She was beautiful, of course, and stronger than she appeared. The sparring matches had proven that. Solas was afraid to admit to himself that he was already feeling the flutter of his heart when she was around. He was always curious as to what she was doing. 

 

This was  _ not  _ good. 

 

He smiled at her still, unable to stop himself from wanting to be around her. “Even the commander?” He asked with a quirked brow. “That is a feat.”

 

"Oh, he has no idea. The only person besides you and Eirie who maybe even has a clue is the Spymaster," Ade bragged, feeling pretty great about her deception. She let out a soft mournful sigh, and looked up towards the heavens for dramatic effect, "It'll all have to end soon, I haven't been able to practice my magic in too long."

 

In a moment of brashness, she added with a twinkle of mischief in her eyes, "Plus, I miss the feel of a staff in my hands."

 

“You do not have one with you here?” Solas inquired, tilting his head a little. He was smirking at her still, as if the little innuendo wasn’t lost on him. “It would explain why no one suspects anything, especially with your blades. Perhaps you should find a new one. I’d be willing to help with that, if you’d like.”  Solas could match her wit and the gleam in his eyes said that while he was serious with the offer, he could play just as much.

 

Ade was so pleased that Solas was bantering back. She could feel her heart racing, the blood warming and pooling in areas which now cried out for attention. She'd already been so bold, so brash, and while it had paid off, she wondered if pushing it was wise.

 

Screw wisdom.

 

She took a step into him, careful to keep their bodies apart so as to build tension. She tilted her head up, her stormy,  blue-grey eyes offering much to the elf before her. "I would greatly appreciate it, Solas."

 

“Well then,” he tipped his chin down a bit, his own grey eyes staring into Ade’s. He could feel the tension there. It was rising higher and Solas knew he hadn’t been careful enough. This woman was charming him faster than he could blink.  He would bite, yes, but he was still holding back on making the first move. 

 

With a careful shift, he bowed his head and smiled at her once more. The look had hardly left his face during their interactions. “I would be more than happy to oblige.”

 

It would be so easy, to take that half-step towards him and close the gap, to take his lips with hers. Ade was mentally calculating the risks and benefits of taking action, of making a move, when she heard the door to the room open, a familiar voice wafting towards her. As her attention snapped towards the sound she instinctively took a step away from Solas, as if they had been doing something private or indecent which must not be viewed by others.

 

She was both mortified and relieved to see her cousin was the one who had walked in on them mid-flirt.

 

“Ade, I want to ask your opinion on something, we’ve been asked to-“ Eirien pauses when she saw the two together and stared. At first it was a dumbfounded look before she realized just what she was looking at. Then she started to grin, eyes narrowing and excited. She had just what she needed. 

 

“Oh, well, I certainly didn’t mean to interrupt your little...moment,” she hummed in amusement, folding her arms over her chest.

 

Ade forced all the tension in her body to let go, putting on an easy smile even as her cheeks pinked. She would be damned if she didn't at least try not to let on that Eirie had something to use against her. Besides, she was still trying to impress Solas. If only just a bit.

 

"You're not interrupting anything, we were just discussing the Fade," Aderyn lied easily, "You said there was something you wanted my opinion on?"

 

“Mm, it can wait. The Fade is much more important, I’m sure,” she was grinning at Ade now, that cocky look spread over her face. It was more than amusing to see her like this.  And still she tried to act like nothing was happening. Even Solas was blushing and clearing his throat as he put some space between them. 

 

“That and I offered her a new staff,” Solas added. Eirien snorted. 

 

“A new staff. Right.”

 

Aderyn was going to absolutely lay into Eirien as soon as they were alone. She made a point to mimic Eirien's body language. Honestly it was coming mostly from a need to have something to focus on. That way she could stay physically relaxed and also not launch herself across the room and shove her cousin out of the door so that this encounter would end. 

 

"Yes, since I haven't had one in ages and I need to continue practicing my magic if I want to actually be able to use it," Ade said, staring her cousin down, with a look that screamed fight me.

 

Nothing she did wiped the grin from Eirien’s face. She only shrugged and waved her hand dismissively, knowing Ade would come for her later. It would be fun, and it felt like being at home again. “I’ll let you two finish your business. Come find me later, alright? I do need your opinion on something.”

 

She slipped back out of the room after that, giggling to herself as she walked back down the hall. Solas was left standing there, his face (and whole head really) turning red.

 

Even while Ade recognized the divine retribution in having Eirie tease her like this, she was mentally calculating the slights so she could get Eirie back. This would be a never ending cycle, no matter how embarrassed either of them got. Well, that's not entirely true, if either of them took it to far there would be a conversation, and a readjustment of boundaries. But for now it was all-out war.

 

"Sorry you had to get caught up in that, this is payback for my actions, not yours," Ade said, turning back to Solas. A little giggle escaped her lips before she could stop it, upon seeing how thoroughly embarrassed Solas was.

 

Despite the embarrassment, Solas gave her a knowing look, before smirking at the little giggle. “I can imagine it’s for the kissing the commander comment, yes?” He asked, hoping to tease her just a little more. 

 

“I am not worried about any teasing, even if I...was slightly embarrassed,” he admitted.

 

Ade chuckled and nodded to tell him that this teasing was indeed because of her comment from Eirie's match with Cullen. "I'm glad it does not worry you. I would hate to think we'd have to awkwardly avoid one another from now on. I enjoy your company far too much for that."

 

She glanced back to the door where Eirie had entered and left, what Eirien had wanted weighing on her mind. Their little break from the reality of the Inquisition was over. Well, maybe not quite yet.

 

"I'm going to go chase after her, see what she needed from me," Ade said, turning back to Solas. She hesitated just a fraction of a moment before closing the distance between her and Solas to place a chaste kiss upon his cheek, hastily muttering her farewell before dashing out of the room.

 

Solas was a bit startled at first, blushing more at the kiss. He stared after her, one hand touching his cheek as she bounded out of the room and down the hall. He smiled to himself, shaking his head as he thought about it. He was getting in too deep, but he didn’t want to stop.   
  



End file.
